Terrebonne schools chief's pay raise heads toward Tuesday decision

A raise for the Terrebonne schools superintendent and a decision on property-tax rates are among the items set for discussion at Tuesday's School Board meeting.

Matthew AlbrightStaff Writer

A raise for the Terrebonne schools superintendent and a decision on property-tax rates are among the items set for discussion at Tuesday's School Board meeting.The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the School Board office, 201 Stadium Drive in Houma. Board meetings are open to the public.The board must decide if it wants to keep the school taxes on property at their current rates, reaping a collection windfall, or lower the rates and let property owners get the savings.The school system levies two property taxes worth a total of 9.27 mils.Because local property values have increased, the school system will get more money from the taxes by keeping the same rate.If the board votes to keep the taxes at their current levels, it could collect as much as $7.4 million — $288,000 more than last year.The board could also choose to let the taxes to shrink to a level that would net the system the same amount as last year. That would mean the tax rates would shrink to a total of 8.96 mills.A mill is $1 of tax on every $1,000 worth of property. Because the state's homestead exemption exempts the first $75,000 of value, the owner of a house worth $150,000 would pay $695.25 if the current tax level is maintained but could pay $672.25 if it isn't.Board President L.P. Bordelon said anyone with opinions about the tax should come to Tuesday's meeting to make those opinions known. The board must hold a public hearing before it approves the tax.Bordelon said it is likely that the board will vote to keep the rates as is, reaping the windfall. He said the school system needs the money, since it's dealing with a budget for this year that's about $2 million less than last year's. The board will also vote on whether to raise Superintendent Philip Martin's base salary from $134,500 to $155,000. Bordelon said Martin didn't ask for the 15 percent raise; the board is voting on its own initiative. Supporters, including Bordelon, said Martin makes less than superintendents of nearby parishes with smaller school populations. The Assumption Parish superintendent makes $155,000, despite overseeing a system with about a sixth the number of students as Terrebonne.Lafourche's superintendent makes $160,000 a year, Bordelon said.Opponents say it's not fair to grant Martin a raise while the district's budget is slim and teachers are taking on larger workloads for no more pay. “Unless I get a barrage of constituents between now and then asking that I vote yes, I'm going to vote no,” member Brenda Babin said. “You don't say you're going to cut the budget in all these places and then give the top person a raise.” Babin pointed out that teachers in many nearby parishes are also paid more than Terrebonne's. She said it would hurt teacher morale to raise the superintendent's salary.“Superintendent Martin has the opportunity to be a hero and say thank you but no thank you,” Babin said. Babin also pointed out that Martin got a pay boost over his predecessor when he was hired.The previous superintendent Ed Richard made $105,000.Though the board won't hold a public hearing on the raise, the public will be allowed to comment when the issue is discussed.

Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@dailycomet.com.